Opinion: Does Age of Empires 4 live up to the hype

Age of Empires 4 is the latest installment in the historically based RTS franchise. Released only days ago, AoE has climbed up to Steam’s most purchased game and has peaked at 74,000 concurrent players.

Age of Empires 4 is clearly a back to basics, moving away from the complexities of the third installment and focusing on what fans loved in previous versions. In this sense, AoE 4 is most analogous to AoE 2. The game manages to bring some new features, such as the asymmetric factions.

One of the main critiques of the game is how poorly balanced some of the factions are. While some of the factions feel absolutely unstoppable, such as the Delhi Sultanate, others do feel quite up to par. It is certainly not as well balanced as the second game which Relic is clearly trying to emulate, however the game can still be incredibly enjoyable.

AoE 4’s campaigns are certainly the most underwhelming part of the game. The series has been heralded for not only its revolutionary RTS gameplay, but also incredible storytelling. AoE’s latest campaign features Norse, Mongols, Rus, and English all with a rather bland documentary style that tends to avoid the more complicated subjects of the faction’s given history.

On Twitch, AoE 4 has been met with a generally positive response from the streaming community. Popular streamers such as Asmongold have been spamming the game, and given some positive feedback and reactions. Though the game clearly has some issues, primarily stemming from being so minimalistic, it is still an impressive addition to the series.

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